The Prince of Halloween
by LuminaLunii97
Summary: What happens when a six-year-old Harry Potter finds his way to Halloween Town? Raised by Jack and Sally, Harry Potter-Skellington will confuse and terrify the Wizarding World while he tries to learn about and survive this world he once knew. Maybe a few friends along the way will help. Rewrite done. Will be continuing again.
1. Prologue

Alright so this is the new prologue, though the first chapter is staying the same but feel free to read again if it's been a while. I tried to fix the spelling and grammar problems, but I probably missed things. Sorry for leaving for so long, hopefully I won't lose my inspiration any time soon.

I just wanted to clarify this is after the movie. Obviously I'm going to be making a story line with the NBC characters, so there will probably be developments that didn't happen in the original story. One part I'm using from the video game is that Jack and the other holiday leaders are now aware of each other and live in relative peace with some contact. Hint hint. All rights go to J.K. Rowling and the creators of Nightmare Before Christmas. I own nothing sadly.

"Potter, Harry," Minerva McGonagall called out.

Everyone in Hogwarts leaned forward in anticipation. Whispers rang out as they all waited to see their savior, some in disgust and some in reverence, but all excited in some way. The first years, too, were glancing around, as nobody had been able to find anyone that resembled the boy hero they had all read about.

Dumbledore watched on expectantly, finally knowing where the boy was after five long years of him being missing. Dumbledore could not find the boy no matter where he looked and was relieved that he wouldn't have to reveal that to the public. Arabella Figg was aware, of course, but she did not interact with the Wizarding community.

Getting the young Potter's acceptance letter had been a relief, though he would have rather taken the Hogwarts letter himself, he could not find it in the stack going out that year. He was concerned about who had taken the child and where they had been, but he would deal with that soon enough and then the boy would be back with his relatives and under his influence once again.

As these thoughts had been running through his mind, many in the school felt a noticeable drop in temperature as not just the house ghosts, but seemingly every ghost in Hogwarts seemed to glide into the room. There was a chill in the air and a breeze of dying leaves. If one listened closely, they would hear a slow, eerie melody that made one think of the dark and of death.

The teachers were all tense as a young boy stepped passed his classmates. His hair was pitch black and seemed to sway in the breeze as it swirled around him, as if it came from the boy himself. His eyes were a bright green that flashed in the candlelight like a familiar and terrifying spell.

He had on a robe whose sleeves went to his elbow, showing off arms that had odd lines running across them, like he was sewn together. For those closest to him, they noted he had similar markings along his neck and the sides of his mouth. None could tell if they were real or drawn on. Many older muggleborns were reminded of an old story they once read while at home about a monster stitched from others.

Under his robes, which was frayed at the bottom and floating off the floor, he wore a black and white suit. At his collar was what many thought looked like a bat, most ignoring the way the wings twitched as though it was alive.

The boy was smiling widely, almost too widely, his steps calm as he nearly floated towards the stool. Minerva stared at the boy who looked like James Potter only if you searched for it. He paid her no mind, along with the rest of the school, who had gone silent at such a creepy sight.

There was a hush as he sat and the hat was placed on his head, though his smile showed still, causing shivers to go down many student's backs. Teachers and students alike jumped when the hat began laughing out loud.

"Oh my, well that is definitely a new one for me," the hat mused out loud, shocking the teachers and older students as the hat had never spoken aloud besides to sort students.

Harry Potter laughed quietly with the hat, his voice low and haunting. The chill in the room grew stronger and a few people covered their arms, glancing around warily.

The ghosts all held their non-existent breaths, nearly shaking in excitement. Of course, how could they not be excited when the Prince of Halloween was in their school?


	2. Chapter 1: Welcome to Town

Harry Potter, age six, was currently lost. Well, not completely lost. He thought he was still in Surrey, but he wasn't too sure. It was because of Dudley, of course. It's always Dudley…or Vernon.

Harry's side and face still hurt from his last punishment. He had dropped the pan of bacon that morning and it all fell on the floor. Vernon was already upset about it being Halloween. It was a reminder that they were stuck with his "freak" nephew as he kept telling Harry.

Dudley was too busy running around in an astronaut costume to care. His Aunt Petunia thought Dudley looked so smart. Harry couldn't help thinking of a giant marshmallow, not that he'd say anything about it.

Harry, of course, didn't get a costume. He didn't get to go trick or treating either. They always locked him up in his cupboard before leaving. Today, though, Dudley and his gang had decided to play Harry Hunting before leaving with his parents, causing Harry to run off. While he ran, Dudley and his gang tried to catch up, but Dudley tripped in his suit, making him fall. He started crying loudly, making Harry turn around temporarily.

He heard his aunt yelling for Dudley and his uncle yelling his name as he looked at Dudley and the fear that ran down his spine caused him to run even faster. Even at six, Harry was very fast, no matter how short his legs were. As he ran, he kept wishing to be somewhere safe, away from his family. He kept wishing and wishing until he felt a weird sensation run through his body and suddenly felt very sick as he felt his insides squeeze together tightly.

He had collapsed to the ground and nearly threw up his meager lunch of a slice of bread and some cheese that he managed to sneak pass his aunt. As he began to feel better, he realized the ground underneath him was grass and not asphalt like what he thought he'd land on. He finally looked around and couldn't help a gasp of shock.

He was in a forest. It had weird pieces of stones sticking up everywhere with small buildings as well. The one closest had some kind of engraving on it, but Harry couldn't read very well, and it was already pretty dark. He had no clue how he had gotten there, but he was still grateful. Although, now he was lost in the woods and didn't know how to get home. Not that he would be better off there. Harry was young, but he wasn't stupid. He knew his family hated him for some reason.

He didn't know why. It still hurt, but he was slowly getting used to how he was treated. He hardly knew anything about his real parents, only that they were dead, and his aunt was forced to take him in. Harry sighed sadly, once again wishing for someone to care for him.

He began walking around the woods feeling a strange sense of comfort in the quiet. It was quickly becoming dark, but Harry didn't mind. He was used to the dark because of his cupboard. He listened as leaves crunched under his feet. He shivered as a cold breeze wrapped around him, but he couldn't do much about the cold with his hand-me-downs.

Harry kept walking around the area, looking at the stones as they gradually became more and more eroded and covered in moss. He didn't realize that he was getting deeper into the cemetery, away from the entrance.

It was late when Harry sat on the ground, near tears. He didn't like his family, but he wanted to be home. He didn't want to be lost forever. He stared up at the stars through the tree branches as tears fell. He sniffled, wiping his nose on his sleeve, jumping when he heard a woman's voice.

"Oh dear, not again!"

Harry looked over towards a small mausoleum with an old black gate that led underground. There was a lady there, her hair glowed red in the moonlight. Harry thought her skin looked a bit blue but didn't think much of it.

Her dress was a bunch of mismatched colors and she was picking something up from the ground. Harry slowly got up and moved closer to her, hoping he could ask her for help. His school had taught them to stay away from strangers earlier that year, but Harry needed help and was more scared of being stuck there than he was of a stranger.

She had turned away from Harry, who couldn't see what she had picked up or what she was doing. He saw weird lines running down her legs as he got close but didn't recognize what they were.

The wind had blown most of the leaves away, so Harry didn't make much sound as he walked closer, working up the courage to call out to her. However, before he could say anything, she seemingly finished what she was doing and promptly opened the gate and started walking down the steps.

Harry's words died in his throat as he watched her disappear into the tomb. He instantly began running towards the gate, catching it as it was closing.

"Hello?" he called out, but nobody said anything.

Harry stared unsurely into the darkness before walking down into the tomb. The gate closed behind him and Harry Potter disappeared from the world. Many alarms began ringing in an old man's office, letting him know the Boy-Who-Lived was gone.

…

Harry could no longer see anything as he made his way through the dark tunnel. He kept his arms out as he unsteadily made his way down the stone steps. The tunnel was dark, but Harry didn't want to go back to the cemetery. He didn't want to go back to the Dursleys.

So, he walked along the tunnel, unsure where the lady was, but unwilling to make a noise in the darkness. He thought he heard faint sounds of music as he kept walking. It was jubilant and eerie. He was sure he'd never heard anything like it in his life.

 _This is Halloween. Pumpkins scream in the dead of night…_

Harry thought that was rather odd. He'd never heard a pumpkin scream. Even if he did, nobody would believe him. His aunt and uncle would call it freakish and then he'd be in trouble again. He saw a light up ahead and began hurrying over as fast as his legs could carry him.

 _Trick or treat. Til the neighbors gonna die of fright._

Harry had never seen someone die from being scared either, but it didn't sound like a fun way to die. He reached the light finally, climbing the stairs out into another cemetery, this one vastly different. The tombstones were all wonky and strange. The moon was huge and yellow, overlooking a curly hill.

Harry looked around, spotting the red-haired lady as she made her way out of a gate.

 _I am the one hiding under your stairs, fingers like snakes and spiders in my hair._

Harry shivered, reminded of his own room under the stairs. He was used to spiders, but he definitely didn't like them in his hair. Nobody ever hid in his cupboard before either and couldn't understand why anyone would want to.

He hid behind a pillar next to the gate, looking into the weirdest town he'd ever seen. He'd only ever been in Surrey, but it was still weird. All the houses leaned in weird ways with a few that seemed to stretch for the sky.

Harry felt a shiver of fear as he noticed some of the people who were singing about Halloween. The was a wolf who walked like a man. A small one-eyed mummy and little boy with stitched eyes were singing around a green fountain.

A man with two faces was standing on top of a car, singing about surprises. Harry watched as the red-haired lady walked towards the middle of town with everyone else as a scarecrow with a pumpkin on its head came riding in on a horse.

Harry stared in fascination as they all gathered around the fountain, jumping in shock as the scarecrow abruptly moved, grabbing a torch and lighting itself on fire. He watched as the scarecrow burned before jumping into the fountain. As a grinning skeleton in a striped suit emerged from the water, Harry couldn't help but laugh in excitement.

It was so weird and strange here, but it was amazing. Harry had only known his relative's home and his school. He had never seen something like this and though he was still scared, he was giddy enough to forget his fear.

The red-haired lady walked up to the skeleton, taking one of his hands in her own. Harry moved around the pillar quietly, not noticing the trashcan on the other side. He bumped into it, sending the lid crashing down. All the celebrating stopped as everyone looked over towards him, making his fear rear up viciously.

Sally looked over at the very small, very _human,_ boy. His clothes were gray and ratty, not very helpful with the cold. Of course, the shivers running through his body could have been from fear, Sally did not know. The boy looked at all the people staring at him before staring over at Sally and taking a step towards her.

The townspeople began talking loudly, then. They were confused and a bit scared, obviously, a living human had never made their way into their town before. The mayor was just as scared but was yelling into his microphone for everyone to calm down before looking at Jack. Jack looked down at Sally who was still watching the boy.

Even with all the yelling, he had continued to look at Sally while he flinched away from the noise. She took a small step towards the boy, who looked far too scared, even for Halloween. They weren't even trying to scare him.

"Everyone, quiet!" Jack yelled out.

It didn't take them long to calm down, looking over at Jack. He just watched Sally as she moved closer to the child who was calming down in the quiet. Everyone watched as she stopped and kneeled in front of Harry. She smiled sweetly, making Harry relax a bit more.

"Hello," Sally started, "my name's Sally. What's yours?" Harry blushed and looked down.

"My name's Harry," he whispered, Sally barely able to catch it.

"Well Harry, can you tell me how you got here?" He glanced up looking at her guiltily.

"I saw you in the forest and followed you into the ground. I didn't know where else to go," Harry cried, tears gathering in his eyes. Sally moved closer, running her hand down his cheek comfortingly.

"Oh, sweetie, it's okay. We aren't mad, just confused. Can you tell me how you ended up in the forest?" she asked.

"I was running from my family," Harry said, not really thinking about his answer. Sally, Jack, and a few listening in frowned.

"Why were you running from them?" Sally inquired.

"My cousin was trying to chase me but fell. My uncle was angry, and I didn't want to get punished," he mumbled, touching his side.

Sally frowned, noticing the large bruise on Harry's cheek. Taking a larger glance, she noticed that he definitely did not look healthy like most of the kids she saw running around in the other world. Under his baggy clothes, he was very skinny, nearly skeletal and not in the good way. She was brought out of her thoughts as Harry yawned.

"Are you tired, Harry?" Sally asked gently. Harry rubbed his eyes and nodded.

Sally knew it was probably very late in the human world and children are meant to sleep early. She held her arms out uncertainly, looking at Harry.

"Will you let me take you somewhere you can sleep?"

Harry looked at her for a moment, but he trusted her. She was nice, much nicer than any other adult he knew. He nodded, wrapping his arms around her neck as she picked him up. Really, he was just too light, Sally thought.

Jack took a step forward as he watched Harry's eyes close. He did not understand very much about humans other than how to scare them, but he knew enough that they shouldn't be afraid of their own family. He looked at everyone who was still gathered and sighed.

"We will discuss this after he wakes up. Sally and I will take him to our home, for now," he announced.

Eventually people began to move away, many glancing over as Jack and Sally walked to their home. Jack told the mayor to set up a town meeting for tomorrow, but otherwise didn't say anything. He was thinking to himself if he should ask Santa Claus about children, since he was much more used to them.

They went into his house, Sally carrying him into a small spare room. The walls were dark gray with peeling paint and faded pumpkins littered on them. There was a small crooked bed with a pillow and patchwork quilt that Sally had made. She put Harry down, smiling as she saw his eyes stayed closed.

Jack and she watched him for a moment before moving into the hallway, closing the door until it was only opened a bit. Sally glanced uncertainly at Jack, but he only smiled.

"We'll figure it out, don't worry," he said comfortingly.

Sally only nodded, making her way downstairs, determined to find the witches and figure out what they could feed a normal human boy when he woke up. Something told her he wouldn't care no matter what he was given, but she'd try to find something safe.


	3. Chapter 2: New Friends

The Great Hall was quiet, much quieter than the staff ever remember it being. They couldn't blame the students since they were just as baffled as the children. It was a rather strange sight, they'd admit. All the ghosts had converged on the one table, surrounding a pale group of first years to speak with one dark-haired boy.

Harry Potter, for his part, seemed unconcerned, even happy to have so much attention from the dead. He was speaking avidly with the Bloody Baron and Sir Nick, though what about, the teachers couldn't tell. Even the Gray Lady had come down from her tower to stare curiously at the boy and the Fat Friar was nearly giddy in excitement.

The other tables were watching the scene warily. None of them had predicted where the Boy-Who-Lived would have been sorted. They had all thought it'd be Gryffindor, even if they had wanted him in their house. Now it was a moot point as he was proudly wearing a yellow and black tie and the Weasley twins were out ten galleons.

The Hufflepuffs, for their part, were a mix of excited, confused and concerned. The boy certainly wasn't what any of them expected. Susan Bones was sitting next to the boy so was one of the worst off with the ghosts.

Her eyes constantly strayed to the lines running around Harry's wrists and arms. As she was closer, she thought she'd be able to tell what it was exactly, but it still seemed to shift between being drawn on and actual thread. She had a disturbing urge to pull on one and see if it came out but pushed the thought from her mind.

She was relieved to note the lines across his mouth weren't real, though they were eerie as it made it look like his smile was much wider than it really was, like he was showing more teeth than he was.

She glanced around at all the ghosts staring adoringly, a bit confused at the conversations they were having.

"How is your father?" one of the ghosts asked excitedly. Harry grinned as his classmates looked confused.

"He's quite well. Mom has him teaching the bats new trick for Halloween," Harry said excitedly, his tie twitching.

Zacharias Smith sneered, as much as an eleven-year-old could sneer, his arrogance and curiosity overcoming his discomfort.

"Aren't your parents, well, dead?" Zacharias asked bluntly, much to his housemate's disapproval.

The Hufflepuffs glanced at the boy worriedly, hoping he wasn't too upset by the question, but were surprised and confused when he only blinked.

"Yes, of course they are," he stated bluntly.

Sir Nick coughed lightly, getting the young prince's attention.

"I believe the boy meant your biological parents, young Harry," he informed him solemnly, glancing at Smith in disapproval. Harry's mouth opened in understanding.

"Oh, yes, they are, too," Harry corrected easily.

"Too?" Ernie mouthed to Justin silently.

Justin only shook his head, focusing on the food in front of him.

The ghosts gradually move away so the boy could enjoy his dinner, but people noted how they stayed much later than they did in earlier years. His house mates gradually relaxed, beginning to talk with each other as the hall got a bit louder.

"My family often vacations in France," Smith boasted to those around him, who only rolled their eyes.

"My aunt is too busy at the ministry, so I tended to stay with Hannah and her mother when they traveled to Greece," Susan supplied to the conversation, Hannah smiling at the memories.

"My parents didn't like traveling," Justin shrugged, "but we've stayed in Bath for vacations before."

Susan glanced at Harry who was quietly eating some chicken, though he was making a weird face when he tried it. She bit her lip but turned towards him.

"Have you ever traveled, Harry?" she asked.

Harry looked up as those around him quieted and stared curiously, many still excited about having the savior of the Wizarding World in their house. Harry grinned again, almost instinctively.

"Oh, yes," he said excitedly, "we go somewhere new every year! Last year, we went to Sleepy Hollow in New York. My dad likes to ride horses. It was a fun trip," his smile turned dreamy.

"Is he any good?" Ernie asked curiously. Harry snickered.

"He is when he keeps his head on," Harry informed him, much to everyone's confusion. A few muggleborns explained how it was an expression of speech. Everyone missed the confused look on Harry's face at the discussion.

"What classes are you all looking forward to?" Ernie asked.

"I think charms will be fun," Megan Jones answered excitedly. Hannah nodded in agreement.

"I heard Defense is a good subject, but it depends on the teacher," Susan commented. Everyone glanced at Harry who was staring intently at the mashed potatoes in consternation. He glanced up, feeling everyone's stare.

"I'm looking forward to potions," he said, his smile turning sweet, "my mom likes to cook and Aunt Haelgamine and Zeldaborne taught me a few for my ninth birthday."

A few people blinked at the names, but the older students were staring apologetically at the boy.

"While I don't want you to not enjoy Potions," Cedric Diggory started slowly, "you should know Professor Snape is not the easiest person to get along with. He really only likes his house. We're lucky we don't have the class with Slytherin, but that doesn't help much."

Harry stared at the boy, wide-eyed.

"Who's Professor Snape?" he asked curiously.

Cedric pointed out a pale, greasy haired man with a crooked nose. Much to everyone's surprise, Harry's smile widened in excitement.

"He's a vampire!" Harry exclaimed excitedly.

A few students stared at him in horror while the rest all broke down in gales of laughter, causing the teachers to look over. Professor Snape was one of them, so noticed the Potter boy grinning at him. He sneered at the boy who only grinned wider, as impossible as it seemed.

Severus was perturbed by the display and decided it was in his best interest to ignore the boy the rest of the night. Harry was dismayed when his professor turned away to talk to a man with a turban on his head.

"Not quite," Cedric said, watching the boy in bafflement, "though some people call him a bat."

Harry glanced at his tie, then over to Cedric in confusion.

"He's not as cool as bats, though," Harry stated confidently.

Cedric laughed, smiling fondly at Harry.

"No, I'm sure he isn't," he agreed humorously.

They all turned as Albus Dumbledore stood up, gaining everyone's attention. As he mentioned the Forbidden Forest, Harry perked up, happy he'd have a way to visit home if he could find the proper trees. Everyone began muttering to each other about the third floor. Harry looked up curiously, wondering what could be in the corridor.

"Is it really so awful?" Harry asked Susan, who was whispering with Hannah.

"Probably, if he's warning us away," she commented, not noticing the gleam that entered Harry's eyes.

As the students broke up and the Hufflepuffs made their way down towards the kitchens, everyone was looking around curiously. Harry was whispering quietly with the Fat Friar who was following the first years.

They were shown into their common room, which was warm and homey with different plants growing around the corners. The first years were too tired, though, and only cared about getting to bed.

As the boys all got ready, many glancing at Harry as they saw more lines on his legs and along his back, Harry smiled contentedly. He thought it was a wonderful first day, though not much happened. He couldn't wait to speak with his parents about it.

As Luci, his black cat that followed him from home, jumped up onto the bed, Harry fell asleep, a skeleton's grin on his face.

…

Harry awoke to gloomy sunlight filtering into the room. He was dazed, not recognizing the dark room. He blinked, realizing he wasn't in his cupboard or even Dudley's extra room. While he was glancing around, unsurely, the door slowly creaked open.

"Harry?" A soft voice called out.

Harry jumped, glancing at the door and seeing the nice lady from last night. Memories flashed through Harry's mind and his eyes widened.

"Miss Sally?" Harry said questioningly.

Sally smiled kindly at the little boy who was looking around once again.

"Are you hungry?" she asked.

Harry's stomach grumbled loudly, and he flushed, ashamed. Sally only held her hand out for the boy, who climbed out of bed and ran over. She ran a hand through his hair fondly as they made their way downstairs.

Jack was downstairs, talking with the two witches, the only ones who were the closest to human in Halloween Town. They were both telling him enthusiastically about foods children could have. Helgamine, the taller witch, was stirring a cauldron with something bubbling inside.

Harry hid behind Sally's leg shyly, clutching her dress when the others looked over. Sally smiled down at the young boy.

"Harry, these are Helgamine and Zeldaborne. They're helping us make something for you to eat," she explained patiently. Harry glanced curiously passed Sally at the two women with green skin and warts all over their faces. His aunt would scream if she saw them, though she'd probably do that with anyone he saw last night.

"Hello," he greeted them shyly.

"Good morning, child," Zeldaborne said, handing Helgamine a bright red bottle.

"We'll have you fattened up in no time," Helgamine declared, glancing at the incredibly skinny boy.

Harry smiled sweetly, moving more towards Sally's side than her back. Jack was watching avidly, his curiosity over a human rearing up. He crouched down to the child's height, much to Harry's surprise. When he grinned, his face splitting, Harry's eyes widened comically.

"So, young Harry, can you tell me where you're from? Sally wasn't around any towns when she came back last night," he asked kindly.

"I live in Surrey," Harry answered quietly, going a bit pale. Jack nodded thoughtfully; a non-existent eyebrow raised. Sally had been in northern London the night before, so he was confused how the boy ended up so far away.

Helgamine handed the boy a bowl of bubbling something. Harry smiled thankfully, barely glancing at the food before taking a bite. He paused, blinking, before swallowing the spoonful as everyone watched him curiously.

"It's better than most of what the Dursleys give me," Harry said happily.

Helgamine nodded, satisfied. Sally was happy he liked it but wasn't sure that comparison was normal. She was mostly sure their food would not be something he'd like making her question what he's been fed before. After that, they all ate, Sally making sure to give Harry another helping when he had looked longingly at the cauldron.

Zeldaborne and Helgamine were cooing over the boy, as much as two witches could coo anyways. Zeldaborne was brushing her long fingers through his hair, making Harry giggle. Helgamine paused, eyes narrowing as she looked at the boy. Jack glanced at her questioningly, but she only shook her head.

"Harry, can you tell us more about your relatives?" Sally asked.

Harry paled, shaking a bit. Jack could feel the fear coming from the boy and he was positive it wasn't because of them. Jack laid a hand on Harry's shoulder, noting the flinch that ran through the boy.

"How about we walk around a bit before discussing this," Jack suggested, grinning widely at Harry, "would you like to see our town?"

Harry nodded enthusiastically, excited to see more and to not have to answer. Sally looked at Harry in concern, she wasn't sure why he didn't want to talk about them, but she was beginning to be reluctant to return Harry.

"How about you do that while I go visit Santa?" Sally whispered to Jack, who nodded quickly before taking Harry's hand.

Harry looked around in wonder as they left Jack and Sally's house. Sally had left after giving Harry a hug, letting him know she'd be back. The witches flew off, probably to gossip with the other townsfolk. Harry's mouth dropped open.

"They're flying!" he exclaimed in awe.

"Yes, it's much faster for them," Jack explained.

Jack began pointing out buildings like Town Hall and explaining who lived in which house. Harry thought the houses were very funny looking, but he was more interested in the people walking around that were staring just as curiously at him. Harry saw a clown on a unicycle, a man who looked like he was covered in slime, even someone who looked like the devil. Harry's aunt and uncle would hate this place so much.

Harry absolutely loved it.

The townspeople were just as curious about the young human. Ethan, the little corpse child and his two friends, the mummy Tut and winged demon Nyx, were watching as they played around the fountain. Harry waved shyly at them and all three boys waved back.

"Jack!" called out the man with two faces. He was smiling widely until he saw Harry and his head turned all the way around to show his other, paler face. Harry jumped slightly.

"Hello Mayor," Jack smiled, "come meet young Harry."

Harry wrapped his arms around Jack's leg as the mayor came over warily. His head changed back and he smiled down at Harry. If Jack was alright with the young boy then it should be fine.

"Why, hello," the man said, "are you enjoying our town?" Harry smiled then.

"Oh yes, it's wonderful," Harry enthused despite his hesitance earlier, much to the townspeople's pleasure.

"Good good, just let me know if you need anything, Jack," the mayor said, staring at Jack with a similar gleam most of the people around them seemed to have around Jack. As the mayor left, Harry tugged on Jack's leg, making him look down.

"Why do they all stare at you?" Harry asked curiously.

Jack's mouth widened into a wide smile as he crouched down.

"Because I'm the Pumpkin King," Jack exclaimed, abruptly jumping up into the air, landing on the ledge of the fountain. Harry stared in amazement as Jack took his head off and replaced it with a pumpkin laying on the ground.

"Wow," Harry whispered, a light of wonder shining in his eyes, "what else can you do?" He asked eagerly.

Jack grinned.

…

Sally made her way through the forest and into the Christmas tree. As she walked through the snow towards Santa's house, the elves watched on curiously, one running towards their boss' home. The door opened as Sally made it to the house, Mrs. Claus smiling kindly at the girl.

"Hello, Sally," she greeted sweetly, "can I help you with something."

"Oh, I hope so. Does Mr. Claus have a moment? We have a…situation in Town and aren't really sure what to do," she said, unsure how to explain everything.

Mrs. Claus let her in just as Santa Claus came into the house, followed by an elf.

"Sally," Santa greeted, "it seems you have quite the interesting visitor." Sally looked at him, surprised.

"You know?" she asked.

"My dear, he is a child. He's under my supervision," Santa reminded her. Mrs. Claus watched on a bit confused though she had a suspicion.

"Can you tell me about him?" she requested.

Santa frowned slightly, moving to his desk and grabbing his list.

"Harry Potter, aged six. Nice every year, yet never been given a single present," Santa muttered, grimacing as he searched through the list again, "Dudley Dursley, also six, naughty for the last three years. If what I remember of the family, I wouldn't be surprised if they gave Harry's presents to their son. Neither were on the nice list much in their lives."

"Oh, how awful," Mrs. Claus said, aghast.

Santa seemed deep in thought, his eyes blank as though looking at something nobody else could see. Mrs. Claus offered Sally some cookies while they waited.

When he finally came to, Mrs. Claus was handing Sally a gift-wrapped box of cookies to take back to the young boy. Santa frowned as he began muttering to himself. Sally wrung her hands together.

"Does he have to go back?" Sally asked, a pang going through her.

Santa was going to answer but paused as he looked at the girl searchingly.

"Do you want to take him back?" Santa asked calmly. Sally bit her lip, looking down before she shook her head slowly.

"No, I don't suppose you would," Santa said, staring at her face intently. He sighed, scribbling an address on a piece of paper and handing it to the young girl.

"Send Jack there. I know you have someone who lurks under stairs, correct? Have him take Jack that way. I'm sure it will work in your favor if Jack isn't already thinking something similar," she took the paper curiously but Santa touched her shoulder, staring into her eyes, "but I want that boy to come to Christmas Town a few times over the year. He will need to return to the human world some day and he'll need to be able to fit in, if only temporarily."

Sally was confused why he wasn't explaining anything but was just grateful for his help. She thanked them both and made her way back towards the forest, Mr. and Mrs. Claus watching her.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Mrs. Claus asked her husband. He sighed.

"It'll make young Harry happy," he sighed, "it's the best gift I would ever be able to give him."

"What?" Mrs. Claus inquired curiously. Santa smiled slightly.

"A family."


End file.
